


Danger: Human

by KatanaNami



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Blood and Violence, F/F, How Do I Tag, Hurt/Comfort, Tags Are Hard, Tags May Change, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:20:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25892761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatanaNami/pseuds/KatanaNami
Summary: Back from Hiatus!Luz couldn’t help but sigh, here she was in a world of magic and monsters and fantasy. Everything she had ever dreamed of and yet because of one mistake she was in a crate likely being taken away from it all. “‘M so stupid sometimes” Luz mumbled to herself as she bounced with every rock the wagon she was on rolled over, “should have thought things through, should have been more careful, shouldn’t have thrown that ball, shouldn’t have even challenged Boscha.”~~~~~Luz finds herself in a less than desirable place and is forced to become the Emperors guard dog and pet.Rated M for violence and trauma. I don't think i'm going to be doing anything saucy in this story.
Relationships: Amity Blight & Edric Blight & Emira Blight, Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Eda Clawthorne & Lilith Clawthorne, Emira Blight/Viney
Comments: 56
Kudos: 253





	1. Trying to Piece Together

Luz couldn’t help but sigh, here she was in a world of magic and monsters and fantasy. Everything she had ever dreamed of and yet because of one mistake she was in a crate likely being taken away from it all. “‘M so stupid sometimes” Luz mumbled to herself as she bounced with every rock the waggon she was on rolled over, “should have thought things through, should have been more careful, shouldn’t have thrown that ball, shouldn’t have even challenged Boscha.” 

Luz got up from her fetal position on the floor of the crate and wiped the snot and tears from her face, she knew crying would get her nowhere, but she couldn’t help it. Sitting with her back to one wall her feet barely fit in the space. She had long since given up on looking around for a way out, she wasn’t awake when the beast keepers put her in there. One sleep spell was all it took and she was theirs, when she did finally wake up she was in a square crate that when she stood up she had to bend 90° at the waist. 

Suddenly, she felt thankful that her mom had made her take cheerleading and gymnastics. Though she couldn’t help but think about Grom and how Amity was able to make a spell circle with her feet. She was letting her mind wander and that was never good especially now that she was alone with nobody to bring her out of it. Luz thought for a second before deciding that maybe it was best to replay what had happened.

~Flashback~

**Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep Click.**

Luz turned off her phone alarm, she had gotten a good rhythm of how things went on the Boiling Isles. Of course everyday at the owl house was different and it was impossible to plan for anything that might happen on any given day. Mornings however were almost always the same. 

After showering and getting dressed for another school day she started on breakfast. Eda didn’t eat breakfast, she was too tired to cook and considered apple blood enough sustenance for the morning. So, Luz got started on making pancakes, she was used to cooking for herself. Her mom was gone most of the day and only came home late at night, Luz couldn’t blame her, being a single mom seemed hard.

She set 3 plates down on the table, two were identical with just a bit of whipped cream while one had the boiling isles version of candy piled up on it. Just as she was pouring a cup of apple blood for Eda, when the foot steps could be heard descending the stairs.

King raced down and without any prompting or regard to anyone else at the table began to dig into his sugary breakfast. Claiming that it was a feast fit for a king and thanking Luz for her amazing cooking abilities.

Eda gave Luz a pat on the head only saying “‘morning kid” after finishing her first cup of apple blood. “This looks delicious thanks kid” and just like that Eda began to dig in as well followed shortly after by Luz herself. 

Eda flew Luz to school and the day began just like any other day, she met with Willow and Gus at the front of the school so they could walk inside together. The only thing they could really talk about this morning was Grom. Her dance with Amity, why Luz’s mom was her biggest fear, her dance with Amity, what was with the human cat things, her dance with Amity. Willow was really insistent about talking about her dance with Amity. Willow overall was really weird about it until the bell screamed, she wanted to talk about Amity with Luz, but she couldn’t figure out why. 

When the bell finally did scream, Luz made her way outside to where the beast keeping track was meeting up. Vet care for mythical beasts went as it normally did, she hung out with Viney, and tried to make friends with the mythical beasts. She only got bit twice this time which was a huge improvement, and even learned a healing glyph, though it only seemed to work on mythical beasts. When she tried it on a scratch that Viney got, it only ate the paper with no real reaction.

After Vet Care for Mythical Beasts she had Healing and Dealing, it was a lot less interesting than she thought the healing track would be, but Viney made it more interesting by having puddles be her assistant. She thought they would be bringing in patients from a nearby hospital to help nurse back to health, instead it was a whole bunch of lectures about bedside manners. She hadn’t even seen the teacher draw a spell circle yet and it had been nearly a week and a half of classes.

Oracle summoning was her last class before lunch, and she was beginning to consider swapping this class for Bard Basics or Drill and Build. The class consisted of a lot of object magic. She wasn’t learning anything and it all came pretty easy. Hold a crystal ball a spirit pops out, make a fortune teller and it will tell you a fortune. She could likely learn everything from Barkus. Barkus was one of the only reasons she was still in the class, he was teaching her how to speak in yips, barks, snorts, and whines.

Finally Lunch. Luz suddenly realised she hadn’t eaten anything for lunch, her stomach grumbled angrily at her as she silently apologised to her stomach. During lunch, Willow and Gus were lined up behind her and while all three were walking to their typical table they were tripped by Boscha, food spilling mostly on the floor. Luz looked at her friends and noticing an angry expression on Willow's face and the faint glow to her eyes she decided to take the higher road. 

“It’s okay Willow let’s just throw this in the trash and一” she was cut off as Boscha drew a magic circle. 

“I’ll help. Afterall all trash belongs in the same place, you know, to keep the school clean,” and just like that nearly all the trash cans in the cafeteria were levitated into the air and dumped on them. As Boscha and her posse laughed and a few onlookers giggled Luz let out a sigh, just like her old high school. What happened next was a bit of a blur, but after seeing tears form in the corner of Gus’s eyes, Luz saw red. Quite literally she could only remember red and challenging Bosha to a grudgby match.

She quite vividly remembered how angry Amity looked when she found them outside. She remembered the conversation too. “What happened to you guys? Are you okay? Who did this?” Willow was comforting Gus so she spoke up “Boscha.” Suddenly, Amity’s face became a deep red, it reminded Luz of the library incident. “I’ll be right back” and just like that Amity left to go find Boscha. 

Almost as soon as Amity was out of sight Boscha was back in front of them, with her posse in tow. One plant magic girl made a magic circle tying them all up in vines, being careful to make sure Willow and Gus’s fingers couldn’t move. “I got in trouble and have to clean the whole cafeteria after our grudgby match after school. So, I decided a little payback is in order.” With that each of them uncapped a marker and began their work.

When it was over they all felt thoroughly humiliated. “Magic Markers. They will only last until after the grudgby match. That way the whole school can see what losers you are. OH wait I just thought of something! Luz一er, loser.” The rest of the group laughed at the connection “Its like your name was made for this” she giggled. 

By the time Amity got back, Boscha was long gone and they had missed two class periods, Apparently, after Amity saw Luz was missing from her Creating Abominations class, she came looking for them. Amity was quick to cut all the vines away and with an additional spell circle levitated all the trash off of them and into a nearby can. Gus and Willow shouted a thanks before rushing to their next class claiming they’d get thrown into detention if they missed two classes in a row.

Luz just looked down, this place was turning out just like the human realm. She felt a cloth on her face and jumped slightly as a response, “Sorry, I just. Sorry.” The second apology broke something deep within Luz. She knew that look in Amity’s eyes all too well, she blamed herself for what happened to Luz.

“It’s Magic Marker,” Luz replied, “And it’s fine. I'm used to it.” She hadn't meant for the last part to slip out. The look on Amity’s face was unlike anything she had seen before. A mix of emotions passed by before they settled back into a calm and collected facade.

“I'm on your team.”

“What? I don’t understand.”

“Grudgby, it takes three players per team, I want to be on yours, Gus is too small for the uniforms and might get hurt. I'll be his replacement.”

Luz thought for a moment,  _ what happened after that? _

All she could remember was the grudgby match. They were beaten severely. It was towards the end of the last round when Boscha shouted something at Amity. Then there was a ball on fire and red, just like before all she could remember was the color red.

The ground beneath her shook as she was brought back to reality. I’m not at the owl house, I'm not at school. I'm in a crate. And I'm being lifted somewhere. The wall around her disappeared and she was blinded by the sudden light that came through. Her freedom didn’t last long as the walls were quickly replaced by glowing blue ropes one on each of her limbs. Looking around she saw the emperor's coven masks. The bird shaped masks hid the identities of the four people that held her captive as well as the one who led the way in front of her.

They led her to a large door with six more guards; the two innermost guards opened the door, and Luz was faced with a darker room. A throne sat in the very middle, a tall figure sitting on it. They had a white robe with gold accents and a mask that all but screamed Emperor. 

With a pull of the ropes that were attached to her feet she fell, barely catching herself on her hands. Her ropes were attached to little hooks on the floor preventing her from rising from her knees.

  
“So, You're the  _ Human _ I keep hearing about.” a shiver ran down her spine.


	2. Emperor’s Prisoner?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luz gets taken to her new home and Eda realizes someone is missing from their trio.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided that since I don't know Spanish, aside from the 3 years I had to take in high school, I will not wright in Spanish to avoid offending people the //text// is going to be code for everything within the // is supposed to be in Spanish.
> 
> (Seriously, I remember almost nothing except how to say Hi, the phrase "oh what a pain" and ask where someone is from, and how to say I want to die, but they didn't teach that I looked it up.)

“So, You're the _Human_ I keep hearing about.”

“Nope” Luz laughed nervously, the one thing she remembered Eda teaching her if she ever got caught was to deny everything.

“You would do well not to lie to me.” Then she remembered what her mom had taught her, don’t take sass from anyone.

“You would do well not to kidnap. You may be the Emperor but一” Luz fell to the ground, a stinging feeling pulsed through the left side of her face. She looked up to see that man gone from sitting on his throne to right in front of her in an instant. Shock overtook her, sure the Boiling Isles was scary and far from PG she had never been put in actual danger by another person. 

“Clearly they were right to bring a being like you in. You have proven no respect for authority, and acted like a mere animal harming no less than 6 fellow students一.”

_ what? _

_ That doesn’t make sense. Sure I was angry at Boscha, but I’m no fighter. Why can’t I remember? Did I really hurt so many people? Who did I hurt!? There were only 6 people on the field, me included. Unless Gus? Did I hurt my friends!?! _

So lost in thought and distracted by the pounding headache she had from trying to remember and seeing only red. She missed most of what the emperor continued to say, only tuning back in to hear him ask “Where is Eda the Owl Lady.” She froze and said nothing. Luz didn’t take a lot seriously, she could admit that about herself. No doubt that most of the time she didn’t take things seriously or didn’t think things through, she was brought on amazing adventures, however they also bring trouble nearly all the time. She couldn’t deny this felt like one of the times it was better to think things through and keep her mouth shut. So, she chose to say nothing.

Sensing her resolve slowly hardening, he knew interrogating her would be useless. “I will get the information I need, until then we want to put you where we can keep an eye on you.”  _ Great im under surveillance. Is this what Juvie is like? Am I a criminal now? Eda would be proud, if I could escape. _

The Emperor made a circle with his finger creating a white circle, easily mistaken for the same blue of an illusionist, even up close. The magic circle was inches from her face and the second the circle was completed it disappeared and reappeared beneath her where she was kneeling. As it moved up her body it broke the restraints holding her down. The first to break were her legs allowing her to readjust to a more comfortable seating position. Then the ropes holding her wrist broke and momentarily she thought about running. 

She knew the way out of the throne room and could guess her way out of the emperor's castle based on the way her crate moved. There was a chance she could get out of the castle, but that might be as far as she would get without getting caught. Actually with the guards right outside the door she wouldn’t make it 5 steps, especially without magic.

Her thoughts were cut short by the circle reaching her neck, a cold feeling when around forcing it up and preventing her from looking down. She couldn’t stop the initial panic as when she tried to turn her head in any direction, there was resistance. Reaching up to touch it, it felt like a small cloth binding no thicker than three of her fingers. But against her neck it felt like metal, chafing and cutting into her skin, covering the entire length of her neck.

It felt nearly impossible to look down without choking herself. Despite being terrified she was also amazed at the magic being shown to her.

This was short lived, as when the emperor began walking she was forced to follow by a seemingly invisible force. She was quick to try and follow but as she tried to rise to her feet her neck was strained down at an incredibly uncomfortable angle. Falling back to the floor she crawled for a few steps just to keep pace before trying yet again, only to get the same result.

There was no denying the quickly rising frustration as any time Luz tried to stand she was met with resistance and the chafing it was causing began to become painful. It wasn’t until she felt raw that she decided that she would have to suck up her pride and walk on her hands and knees. That was when she noticed that whatever was around her neck would not allow her to have her neck higher than where the Emperor's hand lay, but it could go far lower. She finally deduced that it was meant to keep her close to the ground.

Taking a deep breath she continued to keep pace with the emperor refusing to look up at any guards out of fear of seeing Eda’s sister. A quiet snicker caused Luz’s eyes to snap towards the sound. There was no one around.

Luz felt her face flush red as her heart felt hollow. She felt the embarrassment flow through her body with every step. She couldn’t help but be reminded of what her mother said during her first week as a highschool freshman. 

She had just come home with a busted lip and a few bruises on her arms and legs that she tried desperately to hide. There were holes in her leggings around her knees that thankfully were not bleeding. Everything except the fat lip indicated she had taken a particularly bad tumble, which wasn’t wrong.

_ “Mija! What happened to your face? Did you get in a fight? Did you fall? Do I need to get the chancla?” _

_ “// _ _ No, Mom! It is ok! I mean it. Please don't bring out la chancla.// _ _ ” _

_ “You fell? You fell and busted your lip? Mija don’t lie to me. Or I might just have to bring out la chancla.” she said it in a joking tone, but it still made Luz quiet. She looked down. “Mija, you can tell me anything.” _

_ “Promise not to get mad?” _

_ “I can’t do that.” _

_ “I won’t tell you unless you promise you won't do anything without my permission. I’m a high schooler now, I'm old enough to do things on my own.” Her mom let out a sigh. _

_ “I promise.” _

_ “There’s this hill I need to walk up, to get to my math class and while I was walking the kids in front of me stopped and moved to the side. They called my name and when I turned to look at them one of the others pushed me from behind. I fell down the hill. They were laughing at me.”  _

_ “That is it! I am calling the school. // _ _ They're clearly not doing their job as educators! Those children should have been given detention, perhaps even a suspension.// I can't believe you got hurt. _ _ ” _

_ “You promised!” _

_ “I’m willing to break that promise to protect you. You’ll thank me later.” She wouldn’t thank her mom for what happened next. It wasn’t her fault though. _

_ It wasn’t the whole truth. The truth was that the kids in front of her were talking about her recent haircut. One of the boys made a comment about how it made her look like a boy. And that no one would ever date her. One of the girls added to it saying she wouldn’t even be a cute boy. They were making fun of her and it made her mad. Her mom had spent hours fixing her hair after she stupidly decided to cut her own hair with safety scissors. She also couldn’t help but feel like they were making a jab at her sexuality even though logically nobody could have known. _

_ It was like all her insecurities came rushing to the surface in the form of anger. So she ran forward and pushed one of the girls. It wasn’t hard. The other girl only took a step back to steady herself. Apparently, the girl’s boyfriend didn’t take a liking to her girlfriend being pushed as he decked her in the face, causing the busted lip. That was when she fell, scrapping her knees in the process. _

_ After seeing the blood on Luz’s face they ran to their respective classrooms avoiding trouble. Luz avoided getting sent to the nurses in exchange for getting yelled at by teachers for looking bored in class. She had strategically placed her hand on her lip and rested her elbow on the table feigning boredom. When news got to the kids about what Luz had said, she was ostracized by nearly everyone. Snitches get stitches but these were more emotional than physical. That was when she stopped telling her mom anything. _

By the end Luz couldn’t even remember what brought the story on. Actually, she couldn't remember the story, just the color red. Her mind was so lost and she couldn’t help but think that the story was irrelevant to everything going on. So lost in thought she nearly missed being handed over to someone else. Thankfully it wasn’t Lilith, some other emperors coven crony. Luz didn’t hear the words that were exchanged, still coming out of her own thoughts. That didn’t stop her from being thrown roughly into a room.

The room itself was barren. Nothing touched half of the walls. It was a rectangular room no more than 10 feet long on its longest side; the door was on the shorter side which was about 6 feet maybe less. If you were to draw a straight line across the room starting from where the door opened you could mark off which half of the room had things touching the walls and which walls were barren and void of anything. That side seemed almost sterile like she would get in trouble for even walking past that line. So she stayed on the more comfortable side.

In the corner there was a chest, peeking inside it was filled with clothes, most were identical copies of what she was currently wearing right down to her sports bra and underwear, but there were also a few emperors coven uniforms. All her size. There was a poster for the emperors coven on the wall too. It seemed like the whole room was based off of their propaganda. 

There was a basket in the opposite corner full of stuffed animals upon closer inspection and a fluffy/softness test, Luz discovered they were basically squeaky toys mixed in with other toys you would typically give a dog in the human realm except Boiling isles一ified.

“Getting a lot of different vibes in here.” she murmured to no one. In between the two was a desk empty of everything. Nothing inside any of the drawers. No notes, textbooks, files and especially no paper or writing utensil. Which meant no magic. On the floor just past the line that separated the barren walls from the mass collection of things was a pile of blankets. The way they were arranged formed an oval with raised edges, a bed of sorts. And plopping down, it wasn’t much softer than the sleeping bag she used in the owl house.

**~Just Outside~**

“How is the beast?” They looked into the room seeing the girl laying on her side, back to them.

“She seems to be settling in Lord Belos. She just scouted the room and has taken well to the nest.”

“Perfect, I want you to keep her there for a few days. Feed and water her regularly, I want her on a schedule by the end of the week. Then we will try again.”

“Excuse me if I'm stepping out of line Emperor, but what happens if she continues to resist?”

“We take a trip into her past. Existence precedes essence. We change the memories of her existence..”

“We change her very essence.”

“Precisely.”

“How do we know that will work?”

“The evidence is right in front of you. All you have to do is look.”

  
  


**~The Owl house~**

**“** Did you manage to lose your apprentice again? **”** The squeaky voice of a little demon sparked something within Eda. Who was previously laying on the couch taking a short nap.

“It has been quite a while since my quiet evening has been ruined. When was the squirt meant to be back.” Eda looked around for a clock quickly giving up and closing her eyes again.

“Luz and Kings comedy hour was supposed to resume 3 hours ago. Luz should have been home 3 HOURS ago!” While the tiny demon did have a point he also tended to exaggerate.

“No no no. I specifically remember her plant friend, the one with the glasses, she said something about Luz and a grudgby match” 

“Do not undermine my authority! I am your KING! I was there when you got the message. So, I repeat Luz should have been home 3 hours ago! Look outside, it is dark out!” Eda’s heart was pounding now, she knew she didn’t lose her apprentice, that doesn’t mean nothing took her. She would have to find Luz on her own or she’d actually have to risk asking for help. 

Eda grabbed King and set him in her hair. Grabbing her staff she set out looking for her missing kid.

~ **In The Woods** ~

“Lily, I need your help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for all the love and support and don't worry this story isn't going anywhere. While I don't have any chapters written out I have multiple chapters planned in my head. This will be a slow burn story with less of an emphasis on Lumity until after the first few story arcs.


	3. A Trip into a Human Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im so happy you guys are enjoying this story. I am a bit busy with classes this semester finally starting to speed up, but im going to try and update once every 2 weeks maybe sooner. It all depends on when I get time to write. Also in case you haven't noticed, I rewrote the first 2 chapters because I wanted to include more background stuff so things in later chapters make more sense and don't come out of nowhere. Also I have decided that since I don't know Spanish that I don't want to offend people so Spanish will be put in text like this: //text// <\--- that would be what someone says in Spanish.

Eda was well aware what she was doing was risky, but she would risk it all for her little owlet. She had searched all of Bonesborough even encountering a few of Luz’s school friends Willow and Gus, neither witch knew where Luz was, claiming that she went home right after the grudgby match.

So now she found herself on enemy territory, the houses that surrounded the emperor's castle were meant for emperor’s coven members. That is where she would find her sister, but if she were to get caught, it was the quickest way to the Emperor giving her no time to come up with an escape plan.

Eda landed in the surrounding forest, she had sent Owlbert to look for any sign of her sister, to give her a general direction as to where she could be. What Eda didn’t expect was for Owlbert to come back in the claws of another palisman, a white raven.

“Edalyn this was stupid even for you.” The voice came from behind her. Eda let out an audible sigh before turning around to face her elder sister. “What were you thinking coming here of all places, unless..”

“Lily I need your help.” Eda cut her off knowing full well her sister was about to go on yet another rant about her joining the coven. It didn’t work and only seemed to spur her sister on.

“I knew it! You have finally come to your senses and have come to join the esteemed Emperor’s Coven. Rowen drop him.” Rowen Lilith’s palisman dropped Owlbert who was able to open his wings and fly back to Eda just before hitting the ground. “Edalyn he can help you with your cur-”

“Lilly listen to me!” The beat of silence that followed was awkward enough to have both sisters calm down.

“You aren’t here to join the Emperor’s Coven are you?”

“Did you ever really believe I was?”

“I gave it a 50-50 shot,” Lilith mimicked her sister. They both giggled at the reference to when they were both scammed trying to get the bloom of eternal youth. Eda stopped laughing as she noticed the sun begin to rise and light fall through the trees.

“Sorry Lilly, but no. I do still need your help though. My kid. She was” Eda hesitated for a moment, as Lilith put a hand on her shoulder letting her know she was there for her. “Well, I don't know what happened, but she’s missing. I think she was taken.”

“Do you have any evidence for this?” Lilith looked genuinely concerned, this was a huge accusation. Kidnapping was a huge crime on the boiling isles, the future generations have to be kept safe, well reasonably safe, it is the boiling isles. The boiling isles was a dangerous place and with Luz being the only human a lot could happen to the girl.

“No, call it a mother's instinct or my owl senses if you want, but I can feel it in my gut. I know somethings wrong.”

“Edalyn you do know you aren’t her mother right? She will have to go home eventually, you know that right.”

“Of course I fuc-” Eda took another deep breath, if she finished that sentence Luz would force her to put a snail in the swear jar. “I know Lilly, but she’s my little owlet and I-” It was at this moment Eda paused, eyes wide as she looked at the smirk that covered her older sisters face.

“You’re owlet huh.”

“Don’t even start with me Lilly.”

“No, no no, I’m not starting anything.” There was a brief pause as Eda searched her eyes, finding them full of amusement. The second Eda broke eye contact Litith seized her chance. “I just find it funny how after, what is it now? 28 years of living on your own with no attachments a human comes along and in just 2 weeks you are already calling her your owlet.”

Eda let out a loud groan. “Are you going to help me or not?”

“You’re my sister Edalyn, if this girl means so much that you, well, what can I do?” Eda couldn’t stop the smile that appeared on her face.

~ **Somewhere in the Emperor’s Castle** ~

“How is the  _ human? _ ”

“Adjusting better than expected it's only been a couple days and now she expects her food and water at a certain time, acclimating her is surprisingly easy.”

“Good to hear, send her to the red room. In a few weeks Lilith Clawthorn will be back from her scheduled leave, when she comes back you are to report to her in my stead. Until then cease your daily reports, only come to me in cases of emergency. I want you to gather as many coven members that excelled in beast keeping as you can. Come up with a way to train the girl.”

Luz was getting increasingly worried about her sanity. Slowly memories that she was so sure she had were going missing, like her 13th birthday or the name of the place she and her mom went to get ice cream on rainy days. She happily complied with the people that came in and out of the room to offer her food and water and take her out to use the bathroom. In fact, they were even considerate enough to adjust her food to suit her diet. Though, that only happened after an unfortunate incident where they had fed her something with a lot of dairy.

It was hard to tell what any of the food actually was here, they all take the same form of food pellets, she assumes it's because they think she would be a messy eater, but she feels like she’s missing something. Oh right, memories. What about them?

Luz felt some magic hit her. She knew full well what it was, she was hit with another sleep spell. She couldn’t deny it happened a lot. So, she gave in quickly and allowed herself to sleep.

~ **???** ~

There were 2 people in Emperor’s Coven’s uniforms, they seemingly on top of a hill surrounded by an endless forest all the trees were weirdly shaped and contained photos inside. One held a notepad and pen that glowed a faint blue, while the other had 2 squirt bottles tied around the waist. One was a deep red color while the other was a light lavender that was slightly opaque. Behind them lay a sleeping girl, but they ignored her set on getting a job done.

They traveled down into and through the forest wordlessly passing many trees that were withered away. Occasionally, they would stop at a particular memory and as one jotted things down on their notepad, before continuing on their way. Other times the other would look at a particular tree and squirt the lavender colored liquid onto the tree watching as the tree began to glow. Finally, they stopped at their destination, looking at the photo it was one of a girl. The same girl they had left behind earlier, but younger, much younger. The memory was blurry and not much could be seen besides the girl being held by her mother, but it was clear to them, this was her first memory.

One of the 2 pulled out the red spray bottle while the other removed the photo from its place. They sprayed the tree over and over until they saw it wither down to its roots. The two then began their trek back to where they started. Once atop the hill they looked around, the single withered tree had spread to the memories connected to it, in just the few moments it took for them to make it back to the hill, nearly all the trees in a 5 tree radius had died and more were turning fast. All the trees except for the ones sprayed by the purple potion.

~ **In the Emperor’s Castle** ~

When Luz opened her eyes she was laying in her nest. She couldn’t deny the groggy feeling that told her to close her eyes and go back to bed. Her head pounded and every part of her body told her to listen to that feeling. 

Until the door opened and this time someone new came in. Well she assumed they were new, everyone that came in had the same Emperors Coven mask on, this girl didn’t. She had long brown hair and green eyes, she had a similar build to Viney, actually she looked a lot like Viney, but was clearly older by several years. “Hi, there,” she spoke slowly and her voice was a few steps above a whisper. “Can you come here?”

Luz didn’t get up, her head still pounded, so she laid her head back down and ignored the girl and hoped she would go away. The girl however saw this as an invitation to get closer to Luz. While Luz was curled up on one side of the oval the girl sat herself down on the opposite side, just outside the nest. She moved slowly and methodically, it seemed like every little movement was planned out down to her breathing pattern. 

When Luz didn’t react to the girl, she smiled and snapped her fingers. “Up.” Luz let out an audible sigh and sat up annoyed. Almost immediately she was awarded with a pat on the head and a “Good girl!” She sounded so happy and enthusiastic that Luz couldn’t help but smile as a rush of pride flowed through her, even though a distant part of her knew this was demeaning.

“Can you tell me your name?” 

“Luz-” There was something that came after that, she knew there was, but she couldn't remember, if she didn’t remember it must not be important right?

“Hello Luz, my name is Lea. I’m a beast keeper.”

“Does that make me a beast?” Luz looked down, she didn’t know why she asked the question, the answer was obviously yes. She had been called a beast to her face several times in the 2 days she’s been here.

“In a way we all are. Wild demons don’t see themselves as beasts and yet we call them that anyway. We don’t call ourselves beasts either, and to some demons we are. So who is to say if you are a beast or not. However, if you are asking if you are the beast that I am keeping then answer is yes.” 

“But am I a beast as in a danger to society?”

“No silly girl, you are a human, not an witch, and it’s pretty clear you weren’t trained properly the first time. So, it's my job to train you now. They told me you were very dangerous, but all beast keepers know that there is no such thing as a dangerous beast, you just have to know how to talk to them. 

For example, everyone says that the Slitherbeast is one of the most dangerous beasts on the knee, but the truth is that they are very proud creatures. If you treat them as such and don’t bother them, they are perfectly content. I once hung out at the knee so often a slitherbeast used to walk with me, just follow me around on the knee. When I sat down they laid down next to me. Not very violent anymore, huh. Plus i’m so close to your nest and you haven’t shown any signs of aggression.”

Luz just sat there and listened. It did explain a lot from her time at the knee, but she didn’t really know how to respond. A part of her wanted to try and bite the girl just to prove her wrong, but that required too much movement and while her headache was subsiding she was still pretty tired. 

The girl stood up and opened the door “Do you wanna follow me?” Luz hesitated. Nobody ever left the door open for this long, let alone invite her outside. This would be the first time out since she was brought in. And she was going out without any form of leash. Luz stood her headache long gone.

~ **The Red Room** ~

Kikimora stood facing the 2 emperors coven members with an expectant look on her face. “Well? I didn’t have you sent you in there for nothing. What do you have? Were you successful?”

“Yes we w-”

“We have-” 

Both spoke at the same time tripping over themselves. Kikimora sighed irritation gracing her one visible eye. “You.” she pointed at the one with the potions wrapped around his waist. “Did you fulfil the emperor's wishes?”

“Yes, I saved key memories, but the rest should slowly begin to fade away.” The voice was clearly female, but surprisingly sweet from behind the mask.

“Good, now you.” She pointed to the other.

“I have almost everything we need. I may need to venture back in one more time just to be sure, but I have what’s important. I know the location of the owl house, and I know the routine of Edalyn Clawthorn.” Their voice was neither male nor female, but was clearly shy, if not worried. Everyone feared the wrath of Kikimora, and everyone knew she liked things done the right way the first time.

“I understand, a human mind must have been difficult to navigate. Good work. For now relax, the emperor has plans for the human for a while before she can come back here.”

  
  



	4. The Search

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I officially have a BETA! Things should sound a lot better now, because I have someone to translate my gorilla brain into actual words. Anyway, Enjoy the chapter!

Eda let out an audible sigh, roughly combing her hands through her hair, pulling at tangles until they came loose. Lilith groaned at Eda’s actions before creating a spell circle with one of her hands, and grabbing the brush it summoned with the other and walking up behind her. 

They were sifting through Eda’s study, multiple books on wild magic lay haphazardly stacked across the room. 

“You have got to take better care of yourself.” Lilith began combing through her sisters wild locks.  _ This is why I straightened my hair. _

“It’s been 5 days Lilly, and no sign of Luz, you looked for her, I looked for her, we searched the entirety of the Boiling Isles and nothing! Not a trace. We don’t even know if she’s... alive.” Eda grunted as Lilith whacked her over the side of the head with the brush, before continuing her delicate brushing as if nothing had happened. “Watch it!” Eda discreetly drew a circle, manifesting a brush in her own hand.

“You can’t afford to think like that right now, Edalyn.”

“So you hit me over the head, so I can’t think at all?” Eda spun around, ready to hit her sister back in retaliation.

“Stop being so dramatic.” Lilith rolled her eyes, bringing her brush up to defend her face from another attack. “I thought you were Eda the Owl Lady, strongest witch in the Boiling Isles, but here you are acting like quite the warlock.”

“How dare you, I am not acting like a warlock!”

“Then what is with all this worrying and assuming the worst? I know I haven’t been around for awhile, but the sister I know is confident and resourceful, though a troublemaker and quite honestly a pain in my ass most days.” Lilith waited a few seconds to let her words soak into Eda’s brain, a habit she learned very young when dealing with her little sister. If you spoke too much too fast when Eda was stressed everything went in one ear and out the other. “If your student is anything like you, she’s doing just fine.”

“She’s so much better than me, she cares! Like genuinely cares about everyone, and tries to make people happy. She’s this ball of light, that has no magic, but doesn’t care about the rules and does it anyway. I’ve wasted so much of m-”

Before Eda could continue, Hooty burst through the window, being the actual house had its perks, like being able to open any window.

“Hooty! What have I told you about barging into the house?!? Eda snapped, clearly annoyed that he interrupted a heart to heart with her sister. 

“Nooooot toooooo, but you have guuuueeesssstss.”(not to, but you have guests). 

Eda grumbled as she made her way out the room and down the stairs, Lilith not far behind. Hooty had already opened the door by the time she had reached the bottom step. “Hey kids, what's going on?” Willow, Gus, and Amity had barely stepped inside when Lilith had appeared behind her. 

“Miss Lilith?!?” Amity was shocked to see her mentor here of all places. Lilith didn’t even know she came here to hang out with Luz before. Well, “hangout” was a rough term, she burned Willow’s memories and had to go and fix it all. Everyone seemingly ignored Eda’s question in favor of gawking at the esteemed leader of the Emperor's Coven, It wasn’t often they saw anyone of such prestige and the fact that she was in a famously wanted criminal's house, hairbrush in hand, was a bit much.

“Amity? What are you doing here?” Lilith's voice was calm but puzzled as she drew a spell circle to get rid of the hairbrush, favoring her hands resting empty at her sides.

“What am I doing here? What are you doing here?!? Isn’t she a known criminal you have been trying to catch since you joined the coven!?!”

“Excuse me, ungrateful brats, but this criminal is her sister. And we've called a truce, at least until we find Luz. Have you seen her kid?” The room dissolved into chaos, Willow’s eyes darted back and forth between the two while unknowingly making an endless “uhhhhhhh-” noise. Gus was shouting questions at them wanting to know every detail. Amity sat in silence, regretting the fact she not only raised her voice, but had talked back to not 1 but 2 adults.

“Wait.” Amity's voice was back to its normal volume, and the calmness of it got the attention of everyone in the room due to its stark contrast to the chaos. “So, Luz isn’t here?” Eda shook her head. “Luz wasn’t in school today, or the past few days, so I got worried. She never misses a chance to learn more magic, so I asked Willow and Augustus about it. They said you were looking for her a few days ago.”

“Yes, it is true. The human seems to be missing, we haven’t found any trace of her, and we searched the entirety of the Boiling Isles.” Lilith's voice held a solemn tone as she looked over at her sister to see how she was fairing.

“Look kids, I know you want to help, but you’re only children, there isn’t much for you to do that won’t put you in danger. As much as I love the fact you all care so much about Luz, this isn’t something I want you to get involved with. Do you understand me?” Eda’s voice had taken on a motherly tone Lilith hadn’t heard before. If she was honest she was truly impressed, though her face did nothing to give it away. She never saw Edalyn as the motherly type, and by the way she treats King as more of an annoying roommate than anything else, she was sure Edalyn would be bad at it. 

“Yes Miss Eda,” Amity didn’t hesitate to agree.

“But we have-”

“Luz is our-”

Eda gave a stern look at the others making them stop in their tracks. “I know you mean well, but no. Trust us, we have this handled. Luz will be back before you know it.” Eda told herself she wasn’t lying, lying was something she never could forgive adults for when she was a kid. They thought she was too weak to handle the truth or too young to understand anything. They were wrong.

Plus, they did have it handled here was nothing a small group of kids could do that the strongest witch on the Boiling Isles... and Lilith could not. And Luz would be back, there was no question about it.

Eda allowed them to stay at the Owl House for a few hours before their long walk home, plus she really did need a bit of a break from all the stress. She carried out gummy eyes, chocolate covered horned beetlefish, and a few cups of apple blood for them all to share. It was peaceful. Lilith indulged the kids by asking about their days at school and encouraging them to tell her more about it. Eda was more interested about the latest troublemaker pranks and the chaos happening at Hexide.

The topic eventually turned to the day Luz went missing, and the grudgby game. Hearing about their crushing defeat, Eda promised them she’d teach them how to “really” play, claiming she was the best. This led to another sibling squabble determining what was higher up: the Grudgby Captain or the Grudgby Star Player. “It’s called STAR player for a reason Lilly!” By the time the kids left to go home and start on homework, Eda was down 2 jugs of apple blood and almost entirely out of kids snacks and candy. Not that she minded, she couldn’t deny she needed this, she could go back to her study with a clear mind. ...And focus on tracking down Luz.

~ **Emperor’s Castle** ~

Luz was happy. She couldn’t deny the rush she got whenever the door to her room opened. Today was a special day, Lea had told her. Today she would meet some new friends. The thought of friends brought a pang of guilt to Luz’s chest, she had friends. Amity and her siblings, Willow, Gus, even King, she considered them all friends. It made her sad to think that she hurt them in some way to end up here.

The door creaked open as Lea slowly entered, it was a ritual they both had memorised; when someone opened the door Luz had to get up and place both hands on the wall opposite of the door until the door closed again. 

It had to be this way. The one time Luz got excited to see her trainer she ran to her attempting to give her a hug. She only made it a few steps before she was overcome with an overwhelming pain that brought her to the floor and forced her into the fetal position. Even then the aftershocks left her body sore. Luz shuddered at the memory, as a hand touched her shoulder, a sign that she was released from the unspoken command. She had learned a lot of these commands in the time she was taken in. 

Lea ran her through the list claiming that practice everyday was essential. “Sit” “Down” and “Up” were easy and reminded her of the commands she received when pretending to be an abomination. Lea walked to the door giving Luz a firm “Wait” as she opened it and walked out, disappearing around a corner. Luz held her breath as she resisted the urge to follow wherever Lea disappeared to. Nearly a full minute later she heard the command to “Come.” Luz bolted to where she last saw the beastkeeper. Sliding and falling on her butt when the woman panicked and shouted “Sit!” 

They both took several deep breaths calming down from the panic of nearly crashing into each other. When they had both finally calmed down Lea looked down at Luz and began to laugh, affectionately petting the human’s head. “You really should be careful. If I were anyone else you would have gotten punished for that.” Suddenly she paused, the smile and amusement both leaving her face. “You know that anything that can be interpreted as aggressive behavior or disobedience will get you punished?” 

Luz quickly looked downward as she failed to contain the full body shiver that overtook her. ”I understand.”

“Good. Now come on.” Luz stood and began to walk next to the woman with a bounce in herstep. “Heel,” and just like that the bounce in her step was gone, she slowed her pace so that she was just a step behind her trainer, walking almost perfectly diagonally to her. It was almost like a switch had been flipped in her mind and the flamboyant, bubbly Luz was replaced with someone slightly more serious. 

Lea smiled, the human was much better at following orders than other beasts she had to train, she was fun to work with and was always eager to learn. She hoped this next part had more of a positive effect than a negative one.

They arrived at a door similar to her own room, but clearly different. There were claw marks all along it’s frame. Not to mention she could hear growling followed by yelps and what could only be described as chirping. Luz was beyond curious as to what creature was behind the door, but didn’t move, instead looked up to Lea for guidance.

“Before you go in I want a hug, Lea commanded” Luz was ecstatic! She quickly nestled herself in the woman's arms sighing contentedly. Until she tensed as she was picked up, but just as quickly relaxed again, she was in the arms of someone who had taken care of her for days, the only person to show her affection in a long time. Nothing bad could truly happen to her, right?. 

“I’m sorry.” The voice was quiet and held a slightly sad sentiment But before she could think on it, Luz was thrown from Lea’s embrace.

She wasn’t thrown very far, just passing where the door opened. Luz was quick to turn around and look for any sort of instruction, but the door was already slammed shut. The sound had Luz’s heart racing. But the louder growl from behind her made it stop just as fast.

  
  



	5. Cleaning the Mind

“Emperor Belos, it’s urgent.”

“Speak Kikimora; explain to me the cause of such a disturbance.”

There was a brief pause as Kikimora collected herself, preparing for the worst. “Eda the Owl Lady and our Lilith Clawthorn have both been spotted flying over the Boiling Isles again. We fear they may be looking for the missing human pet. I also fear where our Coven Leader’s loyalties lie.” 

“Fear not Kikimora, the titan provides. All is well. Worry not for Lilith Clawthorn’s loyalty, the Owl Lady will stop her search… when she finds out her pet went home.” With that he drew a spell circle, a glowing paper and pen appeared in the air as they moved to write on their own. The page appeared to be torn off from the notebook Luz used to draw her glyphs on. He grabbed the page from the air and handed it to her. “Have someone hide this where Eda will find it, but not quite so easily.” His voice took on a darker tone, “Don’t get caught.”

**~New Room~**

This room was interesting. It was entirely different from the rest of the Boiling Isles. While houses here were mostly made of wood, these walls were almost clinical, creating a vast contrast to what was known about the rest of this world. Not that Luz noticed, her mind halted on all thoughts, the only thing in her head was the pounding of her heart. 

She couldn’t bring herself to face the creature behind her, instead deciding that a quick unknowing death was better. Death never came, but she felt a woosh of air as the creature behind her breathed down her back. She involuntarily shivered causing the creature to growl yet again. “Well, you haven’t killed me yet.” Luz took a deep breath putting both hands to the floor and pushing herself so that she was seated on her knees.

Using her hands she pushed her knees off the ground and slowly turned herself around. She was met with a wall of wild rich black fur that seemed to suck the light out of the room, sticking out at odd angles and surrounded its face. In a way it seemed familiar, like an animal she used to know but couldn’t recall the name of. Thinking about it too long gave her a headache, so Luz didn’t spend long looking at the mane. Her attention was on the blood red almond shaped eyes and thin black pupils that were trained on her.

Another growl erupted from the creature and Luz’s eyes darted to its mouth. It’s lips were pulled up vertically to bare it’s front teeth while also wrinkling the top of the muzzle. Luz scooted back as far as the room would allow her to. The creature stopped growling and closed its mouth in response. Yet it refused to take its narrow eyes off of her, no longer red but instead yellow.

With the creature taking a less aggressive stance, Luz was able to focus on what the creature fully looked like. It walked on four surprisingly lean and smooth legs compared to the puff of fur that was around its neck; the paws themselves seemed to be just bigger than her own hands. The creature stood a head taller than her when she was on her knees. Luz sighed in relief, realizing that when standing she would be taller than it. 

It had a long and fluffy tail, but the most distinct part about it was it’s glowing almost pulsating blue markings. They were the color of blue lighting, nearly white in the center, but radiated an undeniable blue hue. The pattern seemed to lead to or start at the center of it’s chest. An orb of radiating light creating quite the contrast against its dark fur, from there the light seemed to fade until reaching the shoulders. Both shoulders held identical swirls that led down to the torso, converging into a single small swirl surrounded by crescent shapes that varied in size. They were almost hypnotic to look at as they led down and connected to the base of the tail. The rest of the body was free of any marks except for the hind legs. These legs bore a slight glow in the front of where the leg bent.

Her study of the creature came to a halt as a few high pitched wines and yips were heard. A smaller version of the creature limped towards her, it was nearly half the size of King. Then it all clicked, this creature wasn’t viscous, it was a mother! A mother that had what looked to be like an injured cub. A growl erupted from her mouth followed promptly by an irritated huff as the pup curled up next to Luz. It was cold, concerningly so, Luz didn’t know where the information had come from, but she knew if she didn’t do anything… something bad would happen.

Despite the protests of the mother Luz reached over and grabbed the pup, petting it gently. She pulled the creature under her shirt, it’s head popping out the top in front of her giving it as much warmth as possible. The creature let out a happy yip and began licking at her chin. Instantly, the mother relaxed. The fur that was puffed up around her neck flattened to the point where the mane that was previously there had practically vanished. She stepped aside revealing 4 other pups all piled together and shivering. They were in far worse shape, the mother curling around them protectively chirping.

Luz was slow to move, but eventually made her way to the pile and shared her warmth. As soon as the other pups could move they too crawled inside Luz’s shirt to steal as much of her body heat as possible. These creatures were interesting. While the mother seemed to be perfectly warm and healthy the pups couldn’t take warmth from her, nor from each other, But Luz could feel herself losing her own warmth the longer she stayed around them, she was practically shivering already. The more warmth she lost the more she started to realize that the pups had blue markings just like their mother. 

When she had first seen the pups they were all black, any hint of markings were faded and dull. Now she could see that they all had swirls around their shoulders and a mass of blue on their chest, but the markings on each body were different and unique.

After what felt like hours, the playfulness of the pups began to show, they were biting each other and fighting. Luz sighed and happily watched with great amusement as one with markings on its side that reminded her of wings pinned another with markings resembling veins. Another seemed to be trying to bite its siblings face off! It wasn’t until her stomach rumbled that she realized they had forgotten to feed her. Typically she would be fed after training with Lea. Her chest constricted at the thought of her trainer. 

_ Clearly I’m meant to do something. This is a challenge. I have to succeed, Lea is counting on me. She told me I was supposed to meet new friends today. So maybe I just have to make those friends. They already trust me, I just have to get along.  _

Determined to prove herself and make Lea proud she approached the pups, instantly many heads swiveled to her. Even the mother looked at her, a snarl in place, but no sound emitting from its maw yet. Luz couldn’t help but feel betrayed. She had already proven she could be trusted, or was she just used? She quickly shook the thought from her head and instead laid on the ground on her side, mimicking what she saw before. 

It took a few seconds, but soon the mother approached sniffing at her, before latching onto her throat with its mouth. Luz twitched as her self preservation kicked in, trying to pry her free from the danger around her throat. All squirming sharply ceased as a low growl emitted from the creature. Luz’s whole body froze, but the growl didn’t seem threatening, in fact it was quite calming.

The rest of the experience was fuzzy for Luz, she remembered an attempt to pick her up by the neck which failed instantly. A sharp pain in her neck, it didn’t hurt all that much, but enough for her to remember it. She remembered the yelling, getting picked up and a loud whine. Then she woke up in her own nest, still no food.

~Throne Room~

“My Emperor, we think we were successful in connecting the human with the Bluemoon Wolves.”

“Mhmmmm… Tell me my child, does the Emperor’s Coven take anything less than the best?”

“My Emperor?” The woman in robes looked up from the floor where she was kneeling before the elevated throne.

“Answer the question, Lea.”

“No?”

“Hmmmm… So it is safe to assume that we don’t accept anything less than 100 percent from our members.”

“Y-yes...”

“Tell me Lea, does ‘we think’ sound like 100 percent?”

“No, my Emperor, but the human we feared for her life-” Lea was cut off as the heart of the titan began to beat rapidly behind the throne.

“I do not care for the creature, if she dies then it is the Titan’s will, you removed her without permission, and worse you injured the mother beyond repair. She will have to be put down as soon as the pups can survive without her. Now, when she awakens, put her back in and don’t let her out unless under  _ my  _ specific orders.”

“Yes, my Emperor. ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all sorry for being gone so long, as a fellow reader I know how annoying it is to be left on a Cliffhanger as a writer goes on hiatus for an unreasonably long time. As an apology there will be an update tomorrow, and the day after to make up for the weeks I've been gone. Then we will be going back to the regular schedule of once every 2 weeks.


	6. Hapless Future

Luz was at a loss. She was starving; it had been a whole 2 days since she was last fed. Not to mention she was back in the weird room with the strange demons. The mother was laying on her belly looking curiously at her. Meanwhile the pups ran at her, clearly excited to see her again.

Luz was pushed to the ground and only once her face was sufficiently covered in saliva was she able to sit back up. The pups pounced on one another, biting and pulling on each other's ears. But when they went to encourage her to join their game a low warning growl had all their heads swiveling back towards their mother. A single echoed bark and they all bounded toward her.

Now that they were farther away, Luz could clearly see than despite only being away for a couple days the pups had grown nearly a quarter in size. Instead of reaching up to scratch at her knees while on their hind legs, the scratches reached from her ankles all the way to about half way up her thighs.

Another bark came from the mother as well as a chirp. Luz didn’t know what to do with herself except watch. It was obvious that they were communicating, but the pups didn’t respond, in fact the mother wasn’t even looking at them any more, it’s blue eyes stared deeply into Luz as it repeated the noise.

One of the pups huffed in frustration before running towards her and clamping down on her hand. Luz couldn’t help the grunt and wince as the sharp teeth penetrated into her skin. She sucked in a harsh inhale when the pup started pulling her, she could feel her hand moistening and began to worry if it was with drool or blood. Regardless, she was forced to walk on bent knees, basically squatting, while using her other free hand as balance.

She nearly fell numerous times, but eventually made her way over to the mother and the other pups. The mother was now standing and with Luz’s hand still being held captive she basically towered over the poor girl. The creature's eyes shifted colors again, a soft green taking over as she sniffed and licked at the girl's neck. 

A scar had formed there, 4 angry red lines that wrapped around the right half of her neck. Some areas were darker than others and none were the same length. Luz had already forgotten about them if she was being honest, she had gotten hurt loads before back at….home…  _ That’s weird, home doesn’t look anything like The Owl House. It doesn't even look like the Boiling Isles.  _ Luz gripped her head in an attempt to quell the oncoming headache.

She rubbed her temples to no avail, the pounding seemed to get worse. Slowly she lowered herself to the floor, trying to find a comfortable position. Laying on her stomach helped to block out the most light, which calmed the pounding between her eyes but made her nauseous. Her head continued to throb as she flipped onto her back and draped her arm over her eyes to help block her eyes. Her nausea only seemed to get worse, not to mention she couldn't block out the light as well this way.

Luz ran through every option in her head. Dehydration _ is the most likely, I haven’t eaten anything in 2 days. Maybe I’m just not breathing enough. I think I had a problem like that before...  _ The headache got worse and Luz let out a whimper, only making the pain known to those around her.

In a last ditch attempt Luz rolled onto her side, only to be met with a face full of dark fur. Luz couldn't stop the rising panic that came on at the thought of the massive creature above her and the helpless state she was in. All panicked thoughts ceased as a weight was put on her back, as the creature was laying back down when Luz rolled into her, wrapping her head around the girl. 

The headache didn’t stop, but Luz had one less thing to worry about as she fought wave after wave of oncoming pain, no longer needing to block any of the light through a curtain of dark, soft fur.

~Just outside~

“Let Emperor Belos know we are clear to progress to Phase 2, when he gives the order.” There was a beat of silence where the underling was about to move to follow orders. “One more thing, ask when Lilith Clawthore is expected to return to us. She was expected back days ago.”

“Yes, ma’am.” The underling was clearly shaken at the thought of asking such a question, one did not casually ask Emperor Belos of such a question. There was a hierarchy in place and this underling certainly did not have the authority.

~Blight Household~

Amity rubbed her temples as she attempted to finish the last of her abomination homework, while also blocking out the insufferable Giffler of a sibling she had. Honestly, Em was tolerable, she understood that there was a line in the sand, like knocking before entering her bedroom, or even just giving a quiet hour so she could regain a level of control over herself as to not murder her. Ed was a different story.

She understood Ed was a little different than the rest of them, everyone needs alone time from each other, everyone except Ed. He was insistent that he couldn’t be left alone with his thoughts, she couldn’t deny that there were days that she couldn’t be left alone with hers either, but that was not the reason  _ he  _ couldn’t be left alone  _ sometimes _ .

He had a kind heart and never truly means to be cruel, but he had the mind of a child. He was a hazard to those around him, clumsily never thinking things all the way through. That was why he couldn’t be left alone. It was also why she couldn't finish the last of her abomination homework for this week, granted it was only Tuesday. So she could give him some slack, but she knew if she didn’t get it done when her parents came home she would be in deep trouble.

The library was no longer an option since she had lost a Grudgeby match. She used to be Captain and to lose even without practicing for a year was unforgivable in her parents eyes. So they shortened her metaphorical leash.

There was a moment of complete silence, which Amity couldn’t be more relieved to hear. She was able to find the answers to the last 3 questions in her textbook and eloquently reworded it to be the perfect answer. Standing from her desk she was thankful that her parents had yet to come home yet, and threw herself into bed closing her eyes and cherishing the silence.

_ It’s been quiet for too long.  _ Groaning, Amity gets up to look out her window where the obnoxious noises her brother was making were coming from. It only takes her a few seconds to scan the entirety of the area she sees from her window, but she insists on double and triple checking when her heart drops.  _ He’s not there. Oh no.  _ Amity turns just as the doorknob to her room opens and her fears come to fruition.

“Hey, Mittens!” Ed sounded concerningly smug.

“I know we are supposed to be laying off since the library incident, but-“ Em continued from where her brother left off only to be interrupted by the youngest sibling.

“Then why are you here?” Amity made sure her face was as stoic as ever, she knew any ounce of weakness she showed they wouldn’t hesitate to use against her with their parents away. “Don’t sugar coat things; just tell me what you want.”

“Don’t be like that Mittens!” This was the second time Ed had called her mittens, so she knew he was definitely onto something. Typically if he just wanted to annoy her he’d call her it in public, but if he wanted to actually have a conversation he’d at least have the decency to use her name.

“Don't call me Mittens.”

“We just want to help you.” Amity froze at her sisters words, searching her eyes for any hint of devious intentions. “We know you snuck out with your friends to visit The Owl Lady, don’t look at me like that we aren’t going to tell! We are just proud our baby sister is finally going against mommy and daddy dearest.”

Amity couldn’t stop herself from snorting in amusement, before breaking out into a fit of laughter. The twins looked at each other, then back at their sibling.

“First of all, no way is any of that true, I know for a fact that you aren’t  **that** dumb. Maybe Edric is but-”

“HEY!”

“No, no she has a point, but please fill us in on what is so funny.”

“The fact that you think this is the first time I've disobeyed them. Honestly, I thought you of all people would have more faith in me.” The twins looked at eachother dumbfounded.

“Did you know?” Edric looked as lost as ever as he leaned over and fake whispered.

“Not at all, I thought she was the perfectly brainwashed little miss perfect our parents wanted!”

“Oh, wow. Wait really?” Amity said taken aback with pride. “Hm, then I guess I’m better than I thought.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” the twins inquired in unison. 

“Strict parents breed good liars. I know the difference between your footsteps, Emira’s footsteps and both our parent’s footsteps. I also know how to convincingly lie on the spot. I know how to do just enough to make it seem like I obey and worship their every word.” Amity paused to enjoy the shocked look on both their faces. “Little miss perfect...” she whispered humoredly, “pfft, I like that.”

“Yeah okay we get it,” snapped Em.

“But did you really have to laugh at us?” moped Ed. 

“Oh, no at first I was actually surprised and actually started laughing. Then I just wanted you to feel bad, to get back at all you’ve done, so I faked laughing harder.  _ Then  _ I thought about how breaking the rules was your guys’ whole thing and is basically a huge part of who you are as people and I just outclassed you and you weren’t even aware of it, and started laughing again.”

“You’re kind of an asshole you know.” Amity couldn’t help but deadpan at her eldest sibling.

“You left me to die in a library. Luz and I could have been killed! And as much as you call me a nerd and as much as I do love books, I refuse to die in a library.”

“When will you let that go!?!” they both pined. 

“Let me tell you again that LUZ and I almost DIED!”

“The Boiling Isles is a dangerous place and everyone but Luz knows that. And you left your younger less experienced, but apparently better in every way sibling, alone! All so you could go goblin tipping.”

The twins seemed to have had enough. “Okay, okay we see your point. Anyway, are you in?”

“Not until you tell me the whole story, i'm not just going to agree with you ‘cause you claim it’s to help me. I learned that lesson years ago,” she muttered while reminiscing in quiet, traumatized agony.” 

“Fair, okay, so you know the field trip to the Emperor’s coven coming up in a few days? Well, Edric and I think that we could use that time to sneak around and see if we could find Luz. We know how worried you are, and we know that every time we go out you look for her round little ears and pixie cut hair.” Emira shot Amity a look when the topic of Luz came up. Amity tried her best to ignore the heat that started to gather in her cheeks.

“Why do you two think she’d be in the Emperor’s Castle?”

“For someone who claims to be so smart you sure are  _ stupid _ . If she’s not anywhere we checked then she has to be somewhere we haven’t. Plus if Eda the Owl Lady and Lilith are looking for her and even they can’t find her, she has to be somewhere they also haven’t looked, or can’t look.” Amity’s mouth hung open, she was genuinely surprised, it made so much sense and it came out of Edrics mouth, she couldn’t believe it.

Amity quickly thinks to herself. “Eda’s a criminal, so she can’t go into the castle.”

“Exactly!” Both twins had proud looks on their faces as Amity slowly caught on to their way of thinking.

“But what about Lilith!?! Wouldn’t she know about Luz?”

“We… haven’t thought that part out yet.” Emira scratched the back of her head, of course her sister could come up with all the holes in their brilliant thinking.

“Lilith being head of the Coven must know if the Emperor has her!”

“Again, we don’t know, other than that it makes complete sense.” Edric threw himself onto her bed, it was almost like the entire first half of the conversation meant nothing. “Just ‘cause we don’t know one thing doesn’t make the rest any less true.”

“It’s a pretty big thing not to know- Ugh, okay, whatever. Why are you guys doing this when I go on the field trip a whole day before you. Wouldn’t it be better if we both go looking, it gives us twice the amount of searching time.”

“No, you're expected to join the Coven, they are going to be keeping a close eye on you, wanting to show you things and persuade you to join. No offence but you kinda suck at illusion magic and you don’t have that many spells under your belt yet, so if you get caught it’s over.”

~The Owl House~

“Eda! I have to go back!”

“We still don’t know where Luz is!”

“...It might be time to consider that she isn’t coming back!”

“...”

  
  
  



	7. Eerie Feeling

“Hurry up, this should only be a 2 minute job. The inner human could come back any second now.” 

“It’s stuck, it won’t come out!” They both stood in front of a large tree, the Core Tree to the human’s mind. One was desperately trying to pull out a marble like object, blue in color that increased in opacity the farther from the center you looked. It was a small object, only a centimeter and a half in diameter. Soon, the marble finally popped out of the hole and into the coven member’s hands.

“Finally! ...How many more of these do we have to do?”

~Throne Room~

“My Emperor, it seems as though the BlueMoon Wolves have successfully bonded to the human, we are already in the midst of phase 2.” With this announcement, a lower ranked coven member opened her hand to reveal 6 identical marbles.

“Ahhh, their MindStones,” the tyrant marveled. He formed a white circle with his finger, blue fire erupted from it revealing a handheld bell with elegant markings all across its surface. He formed another circle with his opposite hand and levitated the MindStones over to him, floating in a circle above his outstretched palm. 

The stones were forced together into a cluster as he closed his hand around them, and hovered the bell over his fist. Speaking the spell slowly, “Mutare quod victus est. Illud totum. Id quod mutatur ad pedes iacuit.” Slowly, he opened his hand to reveal a clapper for the hollow bell. “Are the mutts awake?”

“No, My Emperor.”

“Then let this be the perfect test.” With that, he rang the bell.

“Come to me.”

  
  


~Outside the BlueMoon Wolves Room~

It happened in an instant. They had been watching the Wolves sleep, monitoring any changes or side effects they could see as a result of the operation. Everything was calm and quiet, one guard had nearly fallen asleep on their feet. 

It happened so quickly. The sleep spell should have stayed in effect for at least another few hours. It didn’t.

Every one of the Cubs awakened, having varying levels of success in staying on their feet, but in a few dizzying shakes they suddenly turned rabid. They resembled their mother on the day she was first captured, mindlessly baring their teeth and ínstense gazes. They slammed their bodies into the door, without a care for their own health.

When one of the more experienced guards ran to the door in an attempt to sedate them, they were pushed to the ground as the pack ran past the witch who was clutching a now broken arm. They were gone in an instant. 

  
  


~The Human’s Room~

Lea attempted to calm the human one more time. “Human, please refrain from standing, you are not well!”

“I have to go!” Luz tried once more to push the beast keeping girl out of the way, “MOVE!” She had only succeeded in tripping over her own feet. Lea caught her again and placed her back on the floor for the 3rd time since the fit started.

“I don’t want to hurt you human, but I will if this is what it takes to stop you from hurting yourself-“ Lea was cut off by the screams and shouts outside. When she looked back to the human girl, she was now laying in some kind of fetal position. She was on her knees, head lay on the ground as her hands cushioned it. 

Deciding that she wasn't going to get back up and that her fit was finally over, she left to open the door and see what the ruckus was. As she opened the door, she was pushed back inside by another witch who had attempted to put some escaped creatures to sleep. 

The instant she landed on her back, she saw a blur pass by her, the color purple barley registering in her mind as the human made her escape. She seemed to be following after the other creatures.

Lea cursed under her breath and took chase.  _ I am going to be in so much trouble for this. _

It didn’t take Lea long to regain sight of Luz. In fact, looking at the way the girl was running it seemed like it wouldn’t take long for her to lose balance and fall. The human shifted as she ran, each step seemed to barely hold herself up, she was running on pure adrenaline, and was without a doubt going to be in pain with a killer headache when she finally stopped.

Lea was just a few feet behind Luz when she finally realised where they were, the throne room was just ahead. Taking a last chance she reached out intending to grab Luz by the hood, fingers brushing against the cloth of the hoodie she began to close her hand around it. 

Just as she had a grasp of the human’s hood, Luz tripped forward, the downward force pulling the cloth free from her grasp. Barely landing on her hands and knees, Luz ran after the others and into the room. Lea bursting through the doors just after.

“Ah, Lea, I’m glad you could join us. It seems you have accomplished a great deal when it comes to this human. It listens well.” Looking around, Lea was shocked to see all 6 escaped beasts lined up in a row in front of the throne. They were uniform in every way, the only exception being the human.

“I can’t take all the credit, she is a fast learner.”

“Ah, well this next part shouldn’t be too painful then.”

“My Emperor? What are you planning?”

“Worry not, no harm is allowed to come to the human pet you seem to have grown so fond of. Phase one is complete, and thus it has become a great asset to us. I merely want to improve our law enforcement. These demons have the capacity to track a scent from here to the knee. No longer will criminals like the Owl Lady evade our capture.”

“Of course, My Emperor. ...But what role does the human have in this?”

“I find it to be quite an exotic creature. I intend on making it my own personal attack demon.”

“But My Emperor, you can’t-”

“Do not tell me what I can and can not do.” The Emperor’s words echoed threateningly through the hall. 

“Just because I find you more valuable than a pawn does not give you the right to speak to me in such a way. You forget your place. I will not forget all that you have done for me, but do not forget all that I can do to you.”

  
Lea took a step back, bowing her head. She was about to speak an apology and beg for forgiveness when both of them suddenly turned in response to a sudden **_Thud._** Both had turned to see the once standing human on the floor knocked out cold.


End file.
